


Unlikely Bliss

by bowtiedarling, tchrgleek



Category: Glee
Genre: Klaine, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-09
Updated: 2013-10-09
Packaged: 2017-12-28 21:49:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,582
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/997168
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bowtiedarling/pseuds/bowtiedarling, https://archiveofourown.org/users/tchrgleek/pseuds/tchrgleek
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>As Kurt Hummel arrives in Los Angeles for an on location assignment, his world is flipped on its axis. What started as work may turn into the greatest adventure of his life.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Unlikely Bliss

**Author's Note:**

> This is one of those stories that didn't flow, no matter what we tried. Hopefully we've done it justice. It's an entry, although very late, for the KBL Reverse Bang. I co-authored this story with TchrGleek and it was truly a pleasure.
> 
> Link to the art is here: http://media.tumblr.com/b72763f432120ccc191e2a4b58d620e3/tumblr_inline_mudwcfRPpc1qzjy9p.jpg

*

The blinding sun forced Kurt to cover his eyes with his hand as he stepped out of Quinn Fabray’s Prius and glanced at the area around him. In all the years he had known her, not once would he have ever guessed that she would be living and working here. The vibrant color of the wooden walls stood out among the neighborhood and housed a small grey home with lime green trim. It was definitely something he would have avoided at all costs himself. He had to admit that it was intriguing from the outside. “Thanks for letting me crash here for a few months, Quinn. I really appreciate not having to pay insane rent for such a short time.”

“It’s no problem, I’m hardly here anyway. I’m usually on a set trying to fix the latest crisis that’s happening.” The car chirped as she locked it and they walked through the gate up to the front door of the house. “It’s not very big, but there’s an extra bedroom and a wraparound deck, and it’s all mine.”

Kurt followed her through the door and looked around the modern interior. Quinn stepped into the kitchen and offered Kurt a drink. Kurt took the glass of lemonade and out to the deck, reflecting on how exactly he had gotten here. Back in high school he would not have anticipated ever being close enough friends with Quinn to be living with her like this; even if it was for only two months. They weren’t exactly close, despite graduating in the same class and winning nationals together in glee club. They were much more acquaintances than friends back then, yet something changed when Kurt didn’t get into his dream school. Quinn understood better than anyone the sting of plans that didn’t work out. She had been accepted to Yale, early admission, but her scholarship had fallen through. After her pregnancy and her parent's subsequent divorce, her dad had refused to support her college aspirations. She’d ended up at her third choice, UCLA, because they, at least, had offered her tuition. Quinn had worked hard outside of her classes to pay her own room and board, and had achieved some success as an actress and writer since graduating near the top of her class three years ago. 

Kurt, on the other hand, had stuck with the New York part of his plan, just at a different school with a different dream. He had applied for late admission to Parsons School of Fashion Design, and landed a job as a columnist for VAGA, an independent magazine and webzine for New York’s artists and designers while in his senior year. He loved the variety of artists, musicians, filmmakers and fashion designers he got to meet and interview throughout the year for the website, and the twice a year print publications were almost enough to keep his blood pressure elevated all year, as he planned the layouts, interviews, photo shoots and the designs from the best of the best of their web content.

How did two such different paths end up crossing for these two months? It should seem complicated, but in actual fact, it was rather simple. Kurt had been tasked with a comparison article between style in Los Angeles and style in New York. He was to spend two months interviewing several different designers in LA and the surrounding area, write up an editorial piece on each of them, comparing them to a similar artist he knew of in New York, and then at the end he would return home, create the layout for the print edition, and with any luck, launch himself as the fashion editor of the year. He was most excited to meet Martin Paquette. the man behind FluxusBrand, which modeled itself after a style of art he was particularly enamored with. The art originated in New York, but the fashion had its own unique LA style. They had come through some financial trouble, and Kurt was hoping his article could help put them back on the map as a viable fashion brand.

Quinn joined him on the deck, sitting down on the chaise and breathing deeply. “Isn’t it beautiful?”

“It really is. Again, thanks so much for letting me crash here.”

“It’s really not a problem,” Quinn says, teasingly. “Besides, when your article sends you to the top of the heap, you will have to include me in your acceptance speeches, right?”

“Ah, always the ulterior motive,” jokes Kurt. “Of course, you will get some credit for helping me.”

“Would you like to head out and grab a bite to eat? Celebrate getting into town?” asked Quinn.

“Sounds great. I’m starving!”

“Let’s head out to the promenade and walk along the beach. There are a ton of great restaurants out there and some of the buskers are incredible.”

They rinsed their glasses out in the sink, put on their sandals, and took off for the promenade.

*

The setting sun shone brightly between the streets as Kurt and Quinn walked down the bustling area of the Third Street Promenade. The air was the perfect mixture of warm and cool as teenagers wandered through the stores and couples scurried to make their dinner reservations. As they crossed the street to the next section a skater knocked into Kurt as he whizzed by and he scowled. “It’s so damn crowded in Los Angeles.”

Quinn laughed and gently bumped his shoulder as they weaved through the throngs of people. “And Manhattan isn’t? They’re even more crowded in a smaller space.”

“Yes but everyone’s always in a hurry to wherever they’re going so it’s controlled chaos. This is just chaos with a side of dilly-dallying.”

“It’s called relaxation and the enjoyment of life. You should try it; it could do you worlds of good.”

Kurt stopped in the middle of the walk as everyone tried to maneuver around them. “What is that supposed to mean exactly? I am just fine, Quinn.”

“That’s a subject up for debate on another night.” Quinn tugged him forward and pulled him over to where a small crowd was gathered. “Take him, for example.” She motioned to the subject of the crowd’s attention, a man perched on a stool as he strummed a guitar. “He’s here every week, and I know this can’t possibly be his job, not with that Marc Jacobs shirt he’s wearing. He does it because he enjoys it; it makes him happy.”

“Hey, I’m a happy person, I enjoy things in life.”

“Like what, your next project?”

Kurt looked at the man again and noticed that the song had changed to something that seemed familiar. He did seem happy; his wide smile couldn’t be contained and his whiskey-colored eyes were bright and sparkling, right at him. Kurt’s heart leapt into his throat as the man continued to sing straight to him and he recognized the song from his high school days.

_Before you met me_  
I was alright but  
Things were kind of heavy  
You brought me to life  
Now every February  
You’ll be my valentine  
Valentine 

Kurt bit his lip and couldn’t help smile back at the guy. His dark, curly hair, compact frame and vibrant eyes made Kurt want to stay and listen to him all night. The thought stunned him, but before he could think anymore he was tugged forcefully to the side as Quinn dragged him away. 

“Come on, you can ogle him later. I’m hungry and the restaurant I want to go to is right around the corner.”

*  
As they sat at the table in the little Italian restaurant, Quinn struck up a conversation. “So, Kurt, do you know who you are going to feature in your article, yet?” She looked at him with a smile as she took a bite of her salad.

“I think so. I have interviews scheduled with a few designers, Deborah Viereck, Anthony Franco, Maggie Berry . . . a dozen altogether. I get to pick my five favorites to write up for the next print edition, and of course, we’ll do a photoshoot with their favorite designs for the seasons. The New York part of the interviews have already been done. It shouldn’t take more than the two months I’ve scheduled out here to get this done and get back.”

“A dozen interviews and photo shoots in two months? Aren’t you planning on relaxing at all while you’re here?”

“I didn’t get where I am by sitting around on the beach catching rays, Quinn,” Kurt snapped. “I’ve had to work for every single success. You don’t get anywhere in life by sitting around waiting for good things to happen. You have to get out there and make them happen for you.”

“I understand that better than anyone, Kurt, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t taken time to enjoy things along the way. Seriously, what is your plan for tomorrow morning? Do you have any time off scheduled in the next two months?”

“My first interview isn’t scheduled until two days from now. I was planning to go over my research tomorrow and the next day to prepare. After that, I have an interview or photo shoot scheduled every day.”

“That settles it. You are going to the beach tomorrow and you will take a book and breathe.”

“What? No! Didn’t you hear me? The research is incredibly important for these interviews. I need to know it cold. I can’t be looking at my notes.”

“And relaxation is important for your body. It’s decided and that’s that or you can find a hotel for two months.”

*

The sky the next morning was overcast and Kurt was grateful that at least there would be minimal damage to his skin at least. He quickly tugged his sandals off and sunk his feet into the warm sand and let his toes wiggle around in the small grains for a few seconds as he scanned the wide space for a quiet location. He spotted one just on the other side of the rocks and began to traipse his way through the sand as his feet sunk with every step forward. He paused and smiled as a group of kids ran past him in the sand hurrying to get down to the water. He hiked his bag up farther on his shoulder; the loud voices from the surrounding patrons quieted the further he walked. He finally made it to the perfect place and dropped his bag onto the sand, finding a spot at the edge of the water to sit. 

He took a deep breath of the cool, crisp air and looked out over the Pacific Ocean; he felt incredibly small in comparison. He watched as the seagulls soared over the rolling waves in search of their food, dipping down into the water as they tried to catch it. He thought that maybe Quinn had had a point last night. Maybe he did need to stop and appreciate life more instead of working himself to the bone all the time. The problem with having time was that his mind would wander and he never knew where it would end up, like dwelling on the fact that he hadn’t had a date in years and he wasn’t likely to meet anyone soon.

Kurt reached behind him and pulled The Godfather out onto his lap. It was the only title in Quinn's tiny bookcase that he had somewhat recognized. He grabbed it and fled before she could force him to endure any more move related financial facts. Besides, it was a renowned movie and book;he figured it had to be good. 

He settled back and entered the world of the Corleone's as the water crept up and lapped at his toes every so often. The salty breeze in combination with the overcast weather made it cool enough to stay for some time. 

"Hey, watch out!"

Kurt glanced up toward the loud intrusion of his quiet space and was met two seconds later with seventy pounds of golden fur and a pink tongue licking his face as if its life depended on it, knocking him backwards into the sand. Kurt lay shocked for a second before he snapped out of it. He gently pushed the golden retriever back so he could sit up straight. 

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry. I don't know what got into her. She's always so well behaved."

"Oh God, what a mess. Lucky for you I like animals. At least ones that aren't mine. What's her na---oomph!" Kurt was cut off by another enthusiastic lick and a mouthful of fur. 

"Her name is Lucy. Lucy, leave him alone. Off!"

The friendly dog backed up with one last lick and immediately retreated to sit down next to her owner. Kurt fixed his hair quickly, brushed the sand and mud off his clothes and finally let his eyes settle on Lucy's owner. His gaze came to rest on the owner’s face and he was startled to see a familiar set of whiskey-colored eyes. He said sarcastically,"Well, Lucy's great."

"Thanks,” the owner grinned. “She's my best girl."

Kurt grimaced at the pair and held out a hand. "Well, the least we can do is introduce ourselves, too. I'm Kurt."

The curly haired man smiled and held his own out. "Blaine."

Kurt bit his lip as he looked at the man. Dark curly hair, petite frame, warm-colored eyes, and calloused fingers. “This is going to sound weird, but were you at the promenade last night? Singing there, I mean.”

The man grinned again and nodded and Kurt made a motion for him to sit down. “I was indeed. Most weekends I’m there, playing for whoever shows up. You were there with a blonde woman...”

Kurt nodded and tried not to blush at the thought that this total stranger remembered him from about two minutes of standing in a crowd. “Yes, my friend Quinn. I’m crashing at her place for a couple of months while I’m here.”

Lucy nudged Blaine’s hand and he chuckled and rubbed her ears. “So that leads me to assume that you aren’t from around here. What’s your story?”

“You would assume correctly then.” Kurt reached out to run a hand down Lucy’s back. “I think I’ve made a new best friend. My story, hmmmm. I’ve been in New York City since I graduated high school. I work in fashion.”

“Ah, a transplant like myself. Where are you from originally?”

“Ohio.”

“Really? Ohio? Where exactly?”

“Lima, why?.”

Blaine sat up straight and turned to face Kurt. “You’re kidding. I grew up in Westerville.”

“Seriously? I feel like I should start singing a Disney song.”

“A small world it is. So what brings you to LA, Mr. New Yorker?”

“Work. I’m on an assignment for a couple of months. Like I mentioned, I’m staying with an old friend from high school. What brought you all the way out here from Westerville?”

“Now that’s a long story. Perhaps I could buy you a drink while I tell it?”

“I like the way you think.”  
*

Kurt followed Blaine to a small café overlooking the beach with outside tables so Lucy could sit with them. She held the table for them, her leash wrapped around the legs, while they waited in line to order their drinks, an iced passion fruit tea for Kurt and a peach ginger tea for Blaine, and chatted about Los Angeles.

After their drinks were ready, they grabbed some of the doggie treats provided at the bar and went outside.

“So, tell me how you got here from Ohio.” Kurt looked at Blaine with his head tipped to one side, unable to hide his curiosity.

“Like I said, I grew up in Westerville. I went to a private high school, where I fell in love with the arts. My brother lives out here, so I applied to UCLA and USC. I got in to both and here I am.”

“So do you live with your brother, then?”

“Oh God, no. We’d kill each other. He is almost 10 years older than me. I crashed at his place for a few weeks before I could get into the dorms while I was auditioning and stuff; after that I found an apartment after Freshman year with a couple of guys from school. I moved out on my own after graduation.”

“So what do you do now?”

“Mostly wedding photography, senior pictures, that sort of thing. That’s where the cash is. I’m trying to get into magazine work.”

“Really? Maybe I could take a look at your stuff sometime. I’ve got an in into the industry.”

Blaine’s eyes grew to twice their normal size. “Are you serious? Oh my God! We just met. Really? You’d do that? That would be great!”

As they finished their drinks, Blaine told Kurt about things to do and see in LA while he was visiting. Kurt stood up to toss his cup in the trash and returned to the table, unable to decide if he should ask for Blaine’s number, shake his hand, hug him, or lean in to kiss the lips he hadn’t been able to stop staring at for the previous hour. Blaine solved the problem by taking Kurt’s phone from his hand, typing out a text, and sending it to himself.

“There. Now we can keep in touch while you’re in town.”

Kurt smiled all the way back to Quinn’s house.

*  
Kurt spent the next day methodically going over his research on the designers coming up on his interview schedule. He verified with Luke, his art director, that the photographer was lined up. Kurt had never met the guy, didn’t even know his name, which made him nervous, but he’d trust Luke with his unborn children. If Luke said the guy was great, then he was.

His first interview was with Deborah Viereck. He laid out all the notes he’d taken, wrote down the salient points in his notebook along with the main questions he needed to ask her before moving on to the next designer on his list, Martin Paquette. 

He sketched out a few ideas for layouts, looked over his calendar, and yawned, cracking his neck as he leaned his head from side to side. When he glanced at the clock on his computer, his eyes widened. 

“How did it get so late?” 

He had left himself less than five hours to sleep before he’d have to be up to get ready to go, and that was only if he skipped his moisturizing routine on both ends. He sighed, got up from the table, and shuffled into the guest room to sleep.

*  
Kurt’s alarm went off well before he was ready for it the next morning. He groaned as he looked at his phone, hit snooze, and rolled over. 

An hour later, Quinn knocked on his door. “Kurt, what time is your shoot this morning? I thought I had to drop you off soon.”

Kurt sat up. “What time is it?”

He grabbed his phone and looked at the clock. “Crap! I have to be there in an hour and a half.” He climbed out of bed and rushed into the bathroom to take the fastest shower of his life. Twenty minutes later he was shoving his notes and laptop into his bag and rushing out the door, Quinn close behind him.

They arrived on location with five minutes to spare. Kurt rushed into the building to find Luke waiting for him, chatting with a shorter, dark-haired man who had a camera in his hand. Kurt walked quickly towards the men as Luke’s eyes lit up. “Here he is now, the man himself!”

The dark-haired man turned around and recognition flashed across his face. “Kurt! You’re the Kurt Hummel that Luke’s been gushing about all week? 

“Blaine! You’re my photographer today?”

Luke interjects “Not just today, man. I’ve booked him for the whole month. How do you two know each other?”

Kurt and Blaine looked at each other and smiled. Blaine explained “We ran into each other on the beach the other day.”

“Well, to be more precise, his dog attacked my face with her tongue on the beach.”

Luke laughed. “You’ll have to tell me that story over drinks after the shoot.”

Kurt quickly assessed the shoot location and the clothing and accessories lined up for the models. He found a table and some comfortable chairs to make a cozy interview corner for after the shoot.

Ms. Viereck arrived right on time with her entourage in tow. She had three different models ready to step into the clothing she had sent over the day before. She directed the shoot without a second glance at Kurt, clearly knowing exactly what she wanted things to look like. The three models each had two dresses to shoot. The looks were stark, with high heels and short skirts on all but one dress. 

Kurt had arranged a solid backdrop for the shoot. Ms. Viereck wanted the models standing directly in front of it, lights arranged on either side to make the shadows fall on the wall behind the women in a perfect V shape. 

Once the photos were out of the way, about ten hours into the day, Ms. Viereck finally turned to Kurt, “Are you ready for our chat now?”

Kurt led her over to the chairs and offered her a bottle of water. He sat across from her and launched into his prepared questions. Shortly into their conversation, he heard a camera shutter going off behind him. “What the hell?” He whipped his head around to find Blaine and Luke, Luke directing Blaine as to the best angles to capture Kurt and Ms. Viereck’s conversation.

“Mr. Hummel, I didn’t agree to be photographed for your article. I thought it was to be about my designs.”

“It is. Blaine, Luke, please stop. The focus is to be on the clothing.”

“Sorry, Kurt,” replied Blaine. “I saw a moment and asked Luke. He agreed. You two look great over here and I thought if I didn’t capture the moment I’d be an absolute idiot.”

“I appreciate the sentiment, but Ms. Viereck prefers not to be photographed. Go ahead and pack up.” Kurt turned back to the designer, apologized again, and completed the interview.

After Ms. Viereck had left the building, entourage and designs in tow, Kurt sought out Luke and Blaine. “Guys, you can’t just do things like that. What if she’d pulled out of the project because of it?”

Luke looked down at the floor, scuffling his feet. “I really didn’t think it would be a problem. Sorry, Kurt.”

Blaine looked Kurt straight in the eye. “The shot was there. I took it. I want you to look at them before you get mad at me.”

“But- ”

“No buts. Look at them.” Blaine pulled his laptop over to Kurt’s interview corner and set it on the table. 

Kurt scrolled through the camera roll, noting the attention to detail that Luke had told him about. Blaine’s shots were incredible. When he got to the pictures of himself with Ms. Viering, his jaw dropped. They were stunning. Blaine had caught the angle of the light in such a way that Kurt looked positively ethereal in the photos. 

“Is there a way to cut these where she doesn’t show?”

Luke exploded with laughter. “Blaine, I think you’ve sold him.”

*

The three men went out to grab a late dinner down by the promenade. Kurt texted Quinn to let her know he wouldn’t need a ride and asked her to join them at the bar. An hour later, they were all gathered on a deck overlooking the beach, Quinn and Blaine on one side of the table, Kurt and Luke on the other.

“So, Hummel, what did you think of Blainer’s work today?” Luke grinned over at Blaine, who was shooting him the evil eye.

“My name is Blaine, asshole.”

“Well, _Lukey_ , Mr. Anderson is an excellent photographer with phenomenal vision. Does that answer your question?”

“It does indeed, thank you, _Kurtsie_.”

“All right, boys, enough with the nicknames,” admonished Quinn. “Blaine, tell me about your work. Do you only shoot fashion or do you do other work, as well?”

“Oh, I love photography in general. I fell in love with it in college, mainly,” Blaine explained. “I am a musician, and I sang in choir in high school but when I got to college, I discovered this other talent for visual art. I love to take ordinary things and make them beautiful.”

Quinn smiled. “That’s amazing. Could we see some of your work sometime?”

Blaine looked down at the table. “Actually, I have a gallery showing starting next weekend. You’d be welcome to attend.”

Kurt jumped into the conversation. “Would I be invited, as well? I still want to see the rest of your work.”

“Of course! I- I’d love to see you there, Kurt.” Blaine smiled bashfully, his cheeks turning pink, as he looked up at Kurt through his eyelashes.

Quinn took the information on her phone and sent an invitation to Kurt.

*

Kurt and Blaine worked together on the fashion shoots the rest of that week and the next, sometimes going out for drinks or dinner, other times begging off as exhausted. They quickly became fast friends, chatting about fashion, musical theatre, New York versus California, and arguing over which of their favorite actors were hotter. Kurt was looking forward to the weekend, which contained one of his rare days off for his time in California, as well as Blaine’s gallery opening. 

Blaine came in Saturday for their shoot with Stella Neptune positively beaming.

“What’s up?” 

“Hmm, what?”

“I think they can see your smile all the way in Long Beach. What’s going on?”

“You know my show opened last night, right? Well, I sold three pieces already. I wasn’t expecting anything to sell at all, y’know? But somehow three different people liked my work enough to pay a lot of money to hang it in their houses!”

“That’s fantastic, Blaine! I can’t wait to see it for myself! I’ll be there tonight, remember?”

“How could I forget? One of my favorite people in the world coming to see my soul displayed for the world to see? Yeah. I remember.”

Kurt hesitated, not sure how to answer that. He was surprised to find out Blaine considered him one of his favorite people, but even more surprised to feel a sense of pride at the sentiment. He wanted Blaine to feel that way. Never before in his life had it been important to him to have a friend like Blaine, or to feel wanted in a friendship like that.

“--mel, Hummel! Kurt-” Luke’s voice interrupted Kurt’s train of thought. “What are you doing over here? We’ve got work to do. Let’s go!”

Kurt shook himself out of his reverie and got to work, not wanting anything to run long that day so nothing would get in the way of their evening plans.

*  
Kurt wandered around the gallery that evening, marveling at the beautiful artwork on display. He knew Blaine was an excellent fashion photographer, but seeing the photographs he’d chosen for the show made Kurt realize that he really only knew a small part of what Blaine could do. All of the things Kurt had been getting to know about Blaine over the last six weeks, every glimpse of the depth of his soul was nothing compared to the work on display. Every photograph of a child revealed something of Blaine’s heart. Every picture of the natural world exposed Blaine’s soul to the observer. 

Kurt gulped in a quick breath when he realized the photo Blaine had taken of him on their first photo shoot was hanging in the center of the gallery. It had been superimposed over another photo of the night sky, as if Kurt was gleaming as bright as the stars themselves.

In that moment, Kurt knew he was completely gone for this man, and there was no coming back. He found himself looking for a quiet spot, out of the way of the crowd, waiting for the evening to come to an end.

*

“You stayed.”

Kurt glanced up at the door to the gallery where Blaine was leaning against the frame. “Of course I did. Where else would I go?”

Blaine grinned as he held a hand out and Kurt immediately took it as they walked along the picturesque boulevard.

"I can't believe that I have photos, that I took, hanging up in a gallery and that people are actually buying them."

Kurt squeezed Blaine's hand and nudged his shoulder. "Blaine they're amazing. You should have heard what everyone was saying. The people around me were so impressed with the shots. You have a serious talent for capturing just the right moments."

Blaine grinned and pulled Kurt toward him as he stopped at an old brick storefront and leaned against the wall. "You're good for my ego, you know that?"

Kurt rolled his eyes and snaked his arms around Blaine's neck as he felt arms wrap around his waist. "Be careful or I'll have to change my tune."

Blaine rested their foreheads together as people walked along the street behind them. “Well we wouldn’t want that to happen. I like this tune.” 

Blaine looked carefully into Kurt’s eyes as he leaned in closer. He pressed his lips to Kurt’s and pulled his body flush against his own as sparks flew along every nerve in his body. After too few moments, he pulled back. “I’m really glad Lucy pounced on you at the beach that day.”

Kurt hummed. “So am I, though I do wonder how such a well behaved dog would take off like that.”

Blaine bit his lip and tried not to smile. “Well, I may or may not have recognized you from the crowd and I may or may not have sent her over to you.”

Kurt laughed and rolled his eyes before he buried his head in Blaine’s shoulder. “I should have known. That poor dog.”

“Hey it worked didn’t it?” Blaine ran his fingers through the side of Kurt’s hair and smiled. “So now what?”

“Well,” Kurt pulled back and yanked the man forward as they started back on the sidewalk, “Quinn ran into someone she knew and told me to come home very, very late tonight.”

Blaine laughed as they turned the corner and arrived at Blaine’s car. “I was wondering where she disappeared to earlier.” Blaine raised himself on tip toes to press a gentle kiss to Kurt’s lips. “Well, that leaves a few options-”

“I want to go to your place.”

Blaine pulled back with wide eyes and slowly nodded. “Okay, sure. We can do that.”

“Good.”

Blaine held the car door open for Kurt as he stepped inside and then walked around the back of the car.

When they got back to Blaine’s house, Kurt didn’t waste a minute. He grabbed Blaine by the hand, spun him around, and kissed him deeply. His hands worked their way up the back of Blaine’s shirt, lifting it up and over his head. 

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. Kurt? What’s going on?”

“God, Blaine. I had a moment at the gallery. I realized just how much I care about you. I want you, Blaine. I want to be with you.”

“You’re sure about this?”

“I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life.”

Blaine looked into Kurt’s eyes, seeing no fear or hesitation. He took Kurt’s hand and led him to his bedroom.

*

Kurt woke up to the soothing feeling of fingers running through his hair and a soft voice floating through the air humming a nameless tune. He had never woken up with someone next to him before and he quickly realized how wonderful it felt; especially if that person was Blaine. He inhaled deeply and stretched the sleep out of his long limbs before he remembered the previous night’s events. 

"Good morning sleepyhead."

Kurt slowly rolled over to rest his head on Blaine's chest, his arms forming a cushion to allow him to meet Blaine’s eyes. "Hey. Did I oversleep? What time is it?"

Blaine shook his head and ran a hand through Kurt's messy locks. "No, I just woke up a little while ago. It's a little after ten."

"In the morning? Oh my god, Quinn's probably sent me a million texts asking where I am." Kurt hurriedly rolled over to the edge of the bed and searched for his clothes and his phone. 

"Whoa, hey, get back here." Blaine reached out and grabbed Kurt around his waist pulling him back towards the center of the large bed despite Kurt’s protests. "Number one, I refuse to allow you to run off on me. Second, I may or may not have given Quinn a heads up last night."

Kurt's protests stopped and he slowly turned around in Blaine's arms. "Wait, you did?"

"Only that we may get back late and that you might crash here, that's all. I didn't expect any of, well, this to happen."

Kurt burrowed himself into the crook of Blaine's neck and tugged the sheets up higher. "’Any of this’ good or ‘any of this’ bad?"

Blaine barked out a laugh and rested his hand on top of Kurt's, which was still clutching the sheets. "Oh, definitely good. Amazing. Just wildly unexpected. Then again, you keep on zigging when I expect you to zag."

"I keep on surprising myself too."

Blaine gently tugged Kurt upwards and kissed him softly. “Is that a good thing?”

Kurt kept his eyes shut and chased Blaine’s lips before he reluctantly opened them. He grinned and propped himself on Blaine’s chest. “Definitely. I like where these new things are taking me.”

“I’m glad.” Blaine tugged him closer and wrapped his arms around him. “Unexpected things are great.” He left a trail of soft kisses across Kurt’s neck. “You know, since you’re so new at this, I think maybe we should have a repeat session. I mean, I’m not sure you quite grasped the whole concept.”

Kurt laughed as Blaine trailed his lips down his chest and grinned. “You know, I’m not sure I did. I think, ungh, I think I might have a few questions still.”

Blaine nuzzled his cheek against Kurt’s abdomen before continuing on his path. “Well, Mr. Hummel, I’d be happy to be of assistance.”

*  
Kurt and Blaine were inseparable after their night together. Since Kurt hadn’t scheduled another day off into his life during the remainder of his time in California, Blaine chose to spend every spare minute of time with him when they weren’t working. They explored restaurants and cafés, eating at a new place each night, and always returning to Blaine’s apartment together to spend long evenings exploring each other. 

Kurt had never experienced anything like the feelings he had for Blaine. He knew that no matter what happened in the future, he wanted Blaine in it. He had no way to know if Blaine felt the same way until one evening a few days before Kurt was scheduled to return to New York. He was surprised to find that the city no longer felt like home to him, since his home had become the man sitting with him. They had chosen to eat in that evening, sharing a meal across from each other at Blaine’s dining room table.

Kurt was reflecting on the whirlwind two months he had spent getting to know and fall in love with Blaine when Blaine spoke.

“Here’s the thing; I’m completely in love with you. I know we haven’t known each other long but I can’t imagine my life without you in it. I don’t even remember my life before I met you. I know we don’t have this figured out, but I really hope we can do a long distance thing until we do.”

Kurt gazed softly at the amazing man sitting in front of him and raised a hand to cup Blaine’s cheek. “You are everything to me, Blaine. I can’t explain it, I couldn’t even try, but I feel the same way. I love you, so much. It won’t be easy but we are worth it.” He watched as Blaine’s eyes filled with tears and pulled him in close resting their cheeks together. 

“You are so amazing, Kurt. I love you.”

Kurt grinned and nestled his head into Blaine’s neck. “I love you too Blaine Anderson. So, so much.”

Blaine pulled back only for a second before he tugged Kurt closer and placed a slow, lingering kiss on Kurt’s lips that he could feel all through his bones and down to his toes. He quickly inhaled before his lungs started to burn and grasped at Blaine’s arms wanting to get as close as possible to him. He felt his back hit the couch cushions as Blaine settled his weight on Kurt’s body.

*

“Are you sure I can’t take you to the airport? It’ll give us a little more time.”

Kurt bit his lip as he shook his head and stared down at his suitcases next to him on the ground. “No, it’ll be too hard. I don’t think I could leave if you went with me.”

“Oh, well in that case, I’m definitely going.”

“Blaine.”

“Kurt.”

“You’re stalling.”

“Well I don’t want you to go and it seems to be working effectively.”

“Blaine.” Kurt reached out and tugged him close to wrap his arms around him as tight as he could. “I’m never saying goodbye to you. Haven’t you figured that out yet? Besides, this is just an ‘I’ll see you as soon as I can’.”

Blaine groaned into Kurt’s neck before pulling back to give him a soft kiss. “I know I’m acting like a whiny three-year-old but I swear I can’t seem to stop myself.”

Kurt barked out a laugh before brushing a hand over Blaine’s cheek. “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

“That’s why I’m going to kiss you, grab my bags, and not make a big deal out of this.”

“Right, because we’ll see each other soon.”

Kurt nodded and carefully placed his bags in the trunk of Quinn’s car, grateful that she had stayed in the vehicle this one time; he’d have to find something in the magazine’s closet to thank her. He shut the trunk lid with a heavy thud and spun around as he threw his arms around Blaine, inhaling to remember the unique scent that was strictly Blaine. “I know this is going against everything I’ve said, but I’m going to miss you terribly and for the first time I don’t want to go back to New York.”

Blaine chuckled and held him tighter. “I was beginning to wonder if you were human. Hey, look at me.” Blaine pulled back and waited a few seconds until Kurt gave in and looked up. “You have an amazing job in New York that you have to get back to and a roommate who probably needs her ego knocked down a bit.”

Kurt rolled his eyes and groaned. “Oh lord, now I really don’t want to go.”

Blaine rested his forehead against Kurt’s and smiled. “Kurt, she’s probably terrorizing New York City with Broadway ballads. Besides, the magazine will go up in smoke if they don’t have your expertise.”

“Hmmm, you have a point with the magazine.”

“And,” Blaine continued, drawing out the word, “there’s my boyfriend, so glad he’s back.” He grinned as Kurt punched his arm and followed him over to the door. “I’m going to miss you too, by the way, but we’ll be just fine as we figure this all out, okay?”

Kurt nodded and bent down slightly to kiss Blaine throwing everything he could into the kiss. “I’ll see you soon. I love you.”

“Love you too. Call me when you land so I know you made it.”

Kurt nodded and quickly gave him one last kiss before opening the door. “I will. Don’t have too much fun without me.”

“Don’t worry Kurt, Blaine and I already have our bar schedule mapped out and our goals of how many people we can sleep with planned.” 

Blaine grinned back at Quinn. “Yeah we’re going to start tonight since neither of us work tomorrow.”

“I hate you both so much right now. I’m not sure I trust you both in the same city.”

“Yeah right. Come on, you’ve got a flight to catch.”

Kurt nodded at Quinn and quickly got into the car before Blaine shut the door. He rolled down the window and turned around to glance back and wave as Quinn pulled away from the curb. He waved until they turned the corner and Blaine disappeared from sight before he sat back in his seat and sighed. 

“Well, I’m guessing by that sigh and display that you now have a new perspective on life?”

Kurt bit his lip and tried desperately to hide the tears that were threatening to fall. “You have no idea, Quinn. No idea at all.”

 

_*Two months later *_

A flash of lightning lit the sky behind Kurt as he pried the heavy metal door open and ducked quickly inside his apartment building. A cold wind blew through the small lobby and he shivered as it seeped through his dripping wet clothes and chilled his bones. He leaned against the closest wall as he stared up at the tall flights of stairs in front of him and tried to muster up the energy to climb to the fourth floor.

He groaned and hiked his incredibly heavy Marc Jacobs bag, still just as good as it was in high school, up higher on his shoulder and pushed himself to climb the first flight. A loud crack of thunder burst over the building and the lights flickered as he paused on the stairs. The rain pounded even harder against the windows and Kurt rolled his eyes at the perfect storm that seemed to be following him the past few days.

He felt his phone vibrate in his pocket and he quickly pulled it out to see the caller. His boss. He scoffed and rolled his eyes and immediately shoved it back in its place. The last thing he needed right now was to lose his temper and consequently his job. He loved where he worked and he loved what he did but between the new Editor-in-Chief and the new demands that were being made of him, in addition to not being able to talk to Blaine, he felt like he was spiraling out of control in his life. He just wanted Blaine to hold him and make him forget about the world for awhile. Not that it was possible.

He continued to trudge up the stairs and finally made it to his floor. The toe of his boot caught the corner of the carpet runner as he stepped forward and sent him flying into the wall next to him. “Shit. Are you kidding me?” Kurt felt tears prickle the back of his eyes, his bad week and immense lack of sleep finally breaking through the wall he’d tried to put around them, forcing their way to the surface. He slumped down the wall to the floor and let his bag fall to the ground as he gave up trying to prevent the façade from cracking. He closed his eyes and rubbed his shoulder as he allowed a few tears to escape and make their way down his exhausted and gaunt features.

The echoing sound of a metal door rolling open a few minutes later caused him to glance out of the corner of his eye and groan as a very worried Rachel Berry rushed down the hall to him.

“Kurt where have you been? I thought you were coming home earlier! I’ve been so worried and I tried calling you a bunch of times but your phone’s off---”

“Rachel, stop, just for a second.” Kurt swatted her hand away and rolled his shoulder before he groaned in pain. “Oh, that really hurt. It wasn’t off, it died.”

Rachel stood up straight and tilted her head to the side. “What?”

Kurt sighed as he carefully stood up and painstakingly reached down for his bag. “My phone. It died at noon when I tried to call Blaine.”

“Oh.”

Kurt hiked the strap of his bag up. “What? What is that? What oh?”

Rachel shrugged her shoulders and shook her head as they walked down the hallway toward the loft. “Nothing. I just didn’t realize that you hadn’t talked to him all day.”

“No, Rachel, I haven’t talked to him in a few days. In case you hadn’t noticed I haven’t exactly been able to.”

“No need to get snarky with me, it was just a comment.” Kurt huffed and rolled his eyes at her and she brushed him off. “Well just be quiet when you walk in. We have a guest and last I checked he was asleep.”

Kurt narrowed his eyes at her and let his bag clamor to the floor. “What the hell do you mean there’s a guest? Rachel I told you---”

“Don’t you get upset with me, Kurt Hummel. Just be quiet. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Rachel---”

“Go!”

Kurt grumbled and clenched his jaw tightly before he glanced at his space and noticed a faint light shining under the heavy curtains. “Of course she gave them my room. Of course.” He shrugged out of his jacket and tossed it carefully over the back of the couch, too tired to even care about the expensive label inside. 

He switched the light off by the door and padded quietly across the creaky wooden floor of the loft to deal with whomever Rachel decided to give his room to. He noticed the strap of a bag peeking out from the edge of the closed curtain. A very familiar strap that belonged to a vintage leather bag that he hadn’t seen in person in almost two months. He froze as he stared at the strap, not believing that it was on the floor of his apartment. He was in Los Angeles. Working. Not here.

“Kurt?”

Kurt’s eyes widened and he clasped his hands over his face as he tried desperately not to cry out at the sound of the voice that he’d desperately been missing. He stepped forward and peeked into the room and was greeted by the sight he had been dreaming about since he left California. In a faded, mussed Hummel Tires tee, curly hair sticking out all over, completely ensconced in Kurt’s 800-thread count sheets and down comforter, was Blaine Anderson, gently rubbing the sleep away from his eyes.

“I’m dreaming.”

Blaine grinned and chuckled before a yawn took over his body. He wriggled out from the covers and pulled back a corner of the comforter. “Surprise.”

“Oh my God!” Kurt launched himself across the room and pounced on Blaine, tears finally falling and a vice grip around the man as he allowed himself to break the mask that he’d been wearing since his return. “You’re really here.”

“I’m really here.” Blaine maneuvered an arm out and wrapped it around Kurt and felt him shaking. “Kurt? What’s wrong? Hey, look at me.”

Kurt fought the urge for a few seconds before he sniffed and pulled back to rest his head on Blaine’s chest. “I’m sorry. If I let you go you’re going to disappear and this will be a dream and after the shitty week I’ve had, I absolutely could not handle that.”

“Kurt, I’m not going anywhere. I’m sorry your week was awful.”

“It’s okay, it’ll get better. And you’re not going anywhere right now, but in a few days you’ll go back to LA and then we’ll still have this same problem--”

“I’m not going back.”

“—that we’ve been having with not seeing each other and living in different time zones and we have to – wait, what?”

Blaine bit his lip and sat up on the bed bringing Kurt up with him. He cleared his throat and reached for Kurt’s hand. “I’m not going back to LA. I didn’t want to say anything in case the plans fell through but then everything happened so quickly.”

Kurt tried to find his voice and not get his hopes up but could only manage a whisper. “What plans?”

Blaine smiled and gently rubbed the top of Kurt’s hand with his thumb. “About a month ago I got a call from a guy in New York saying that he’d seen my work in LA and some of the shots we took for the magazine there and that he wanted to talk to me. The next couple of weeks I had some phone interviews, skype interviews, and he flew out to see me in LA. About a week ago he offered me a job as assistant head of photography at GQ Magazine.”

“Holy shit.”

Blaine barked out a laugh at Kurt’s wide-eyed stare. “Yeah. I thought he was playing a joke on me. They offered it to me on Friday and I said yes on Monday, but they wanted me here today. So I packed all my shit in four days, I’m renting out the condo in California, my stuff is somewhere in the US on it’s way here, and Rachel said I could crash here until I figure everything out.”

Kurt squeezed his eyes shut so more tears wouldn’t spill out, these ones tears of happiness. “You have a job. You’re actually going to be here. We’ll live in the same city.”

Blaine nodded and ran a hand through Kurt’s hair. “Yes. To all of that.”

Kurt let out a low whine before he grabbed Blaine’s shirt forcefully and crushed their lips together, all of his feelings exploding to the surface at once. Blaine inhaled and braced himself against the force of Kurt’s body so they wouldn’t go tumbling onto the floor. “So I take it it’s okay if I stay here while I try to find a place?”

“Marry me.”

Blaine pulled back to meet Kurt’s eyes, unsure if he knew what he’d said. “What?”

“Marry me.”

Blaine grinned at the amount of love radiating from the way Kurt was looking at him. “Yes.”

A wide grin broke out across Kurt’s face and he gave Blaine a quick kiss before moving to the opposite site of the bed.

“Wait, where are you going? Get back here.”

“Just a second.” Kurt swatted away the hand that Blaine had placed on his back as he reached under the bed and dragged a small wooden box out. He retrieved a small black box from it before sliding it to its original place and crawled back over to where Blaine was waiting. Kurt cleared his throat as he opened the black velvet box and carefully tugged the ring from its place. “I was walking past a store in the West Village and spotted this in the window. I actually bought it two weeks after I got back to New York.”

Blaine watched as Kurt slipped the art deco-style band onto his finger. “I actually wanted to ask you but I thought you’d think it was too soon, especially with you living here and me on the opposite side of the country.”

Kurt laughed and ran his finger across the cool metal band on Blaine’s finger. “Not nearly soon enough. God, I love you.”

“I love you, too.”


End file.
